Apple Watch And HomePod Are In High Demand

According to a new survey, Apple’s HomePod and Apple Watch are in high demand among consumers.

In a survey conducted by Raymond James analysts, out of the 500 people surveyed, 14 percent had full intentions to buy the HomePod when it’s released later this year. The survey found that more consumers were likely to buy Apple’s new speaker and Beats speaker than Amazon’s Echo. Breaking down the survey, 19 percent indicated they would purchase HomePod/Beats wireless speaker, 16 percent said they would purchase Amazon Echo or a related product such as Dot or Tap, and 18 percent intended to purchase Bose Bluetooth speaker.

June was the first survey that we asked about consumer interest in the just announced HomePod, and relative to the tepid media reaction, interest levels appear relatively high…When we ask iPhone owners, 14% intend to own a HomePod, which if we combine with those that intend to own a Beats wireless speaker, exceeds the ownership interest in both speech enabled speaker leader Amazon, and Bluetooth speaker leader, Bose.

Moreover, the report showed that there was a high demand for the Apple Watch and AirPods which could make up for the flat iPhone sales. 12 percent of those surveyed said they were in the market to purchase an Apple Watch, which is the highest number Raymond James analysts have ever seen for the Apple Watch.

12% of respondents indicated they would purchase an Apple Watch in the future, the highest in our survey’s history, and approaching Fitbit-like levels. Additionally, 22% of iPhone owners indicated they would purchase an Apple Watch in the future, again the highest in our survey’s history, and part of a very steady, and Impressive trend of increasing demand from iPhone owners.

Even though the analysts didn’t release the number for consumers intending to purchase the AirPods, they did say the demand for the product has been greater than the supply for six months.

All we know for sure on AirPods is that demand has outstripped supply for 6 months now. Even as of today, third parties are charging meaningful premiums for AirPods on Amazon, and legitimate channels are shipping products with 1-2 week delays. It’s unclear how large this product category could be for Apple, but this probably has been the most successful product launch outside of the iPhone lineup in terms of early demand levels and media reviews in many years.

While the three products only make up 5 percent of Apple’s overall revenue, the analysts believe that Apple will continue to grow in this category due to the large addressable market in wearables which could help make up for the declining iPhone sales and flat revenue. The analysts said that iPhone sales will be “flattish” until the unveiling of the iPhone 7s, iPhone 7s Plus and iPhone 8 which are expected to debut this fall. The survey also found that consumers plan to upgrade in the next 12 months, but not within the next three months.